What Was The Role of David Herold

[John Fazio]

(04-14-2013 08:31 AM)Gene C Wrote:  

(04-14-2013 07:55 AM)John Fazio Wrote:  ....but apparently the jury didn't buy it.

John

It's hard to get perjured testimony past a sharp local southern jury.
It's hard enough to get the truth past. In the words of their ideological ancestors at the OJ jury, "don't confuse us with the truth, we've already made up our mind"

Gene:

I am more inclined to believe that Dye made an honest mistake of fact, rather than that he committed perjury. Why do you suppose his testimony was perjury?

John

---

(04-14-2013 03:06 PM)L Verge Wrote:  John,

Please see Post #210 on this thread where you did say that Herold left Ford's and went to WILLARD'S - hence Bill and my responses earlier.

Laurie:

Thank you for pointing this out to me. Clearly, I erred. I meant to say the Kirkwood.

I have a hard time accepting that Herold's role consisted only of escorting Powell to near the Seward home and that when he was reasonably certain Powell could find his way from the point where he left him, rode for the Navy Yard Bridge to meet Booth for the purpose of guiding him in Maryland. That is contrary to all of Atzerodt's statements wherein he said that Booth assigned Herold to kill Johnson. If Herold did not go to the Kirkwood, who was going to kill Johnson, taking into consideration that Atzerodt had said to Booth that he wouldn't do it, a refusal that was confirmed by Powell? Further, Atzerodt also said in one of his statements that at about 9 pm, Herold left him to go to Booth. What was Herold doing between 9 and 10:15? If he went with Powell part way to Seward's --and that's a big if--that is something that would have taken a very few minutes. What about the rest of the hour and 15 minutes?

John

P.S. In my judgment, too many people accept the conventional wisdom that Booth and Herold, with a roiling city behind them and their lives, therefore, on the line, would leave their crossing the river to pure CHANCE. Think about that, and if you agree with me that they would not leave it to pure chance, the next question is: how did they know they would get across? Mrs. Surratt told Lloyd that "parties" would pick up the shooting irons, etc., that night. Cottingham made it "two men", rather than "parties". That shows that Booth was certain he would be there, at the tavern. "Certain" and "chance" are like oil and water: they don't mix. One might even postulate some undue influence with respect to Cobb. What do you think?